Agriculture

Doctor of Philosophy in Horticulture

The Doctor of Philosophy in Horticulture is a doctoral programme offered at Kenyatta University through the School of Agriculture and Enterprise Development, at Egerton University through the Faculty of Agriculture, and at JKUAT through the College of Agriculture and Engineering.

It is designed to produce scholars capable of advancing research in horticultural science, crop production and post-harvest technology. The programme addresses Kenya's horticultural industry research and development needs.

Students engage with advanced topics in horticultural crop production, plant physiology, post-harvest science, horticultural biotechnology, greenhouse technology, floriculture, olericulture, pomology, horticultural pest management and research methods. The curriculum emphasises original research that develops horticultural innovations for Kenya's horticultural industry.

Kenya's horticultural industry as a major export earner, floriculture growth, food security challenges, post-harvest losses, greenhouse technology expansion and the need for improved horticultural varieties create demand for doctoral-level horticulture expertise. The programme supports Kenya's horticultural industry development and food security goals.

Teaching is delivered through coursework, laboratory sessions, field trials and supervised research. At KU, the School of Agriculture offers PhD in Horticulture at KSh 367,200/year for East Africans. Applicants must hold a Masters degree in Horticulture, Agronomy, Agriculture, Crop Protection or related areas. At Egerton, PhD in Horticulture is offered through the Faculty of Agriculture at KSh 200,000/year, total KSh 742,700. At JKUAT, PhD Horticulture is offered with total cost KSh 510,500.

Graduates pursue careers as university professors, horticulture researchers, horticultural consultants, floriculture specialists and post-harvest technologists. They work in universities, KALRO, HCDA, horticultural companies and export firms.

Duration: 3-5 years
Public, up to: Ksh 367,200
Private, up to: Ksh 313,700
Job market: High

The programme

What you study, how long it takes, and how it is delivered.

Practicalities

Study mode: Full-time, Part-time
Attachment: 0 months
Average class: 4 students
Award: PhD

What you study

10 subjects

Advanced Horticultural Crop Production
Plant Physiology and Stress Biology
Post-Harvest Science and Technology
Horticultural Biotechnology
Greenhouse and Protected Cultivation
Floriculture and Ornamental Horticulture
Olericulture and Vegetable Science
Pomology and Fruit Science
Horticultural Pest and Disease Management
Research Methods in Horticulture

Modules

8 in the programme

Advanced Horticultural Crop Production
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Advanced crop production, exploring cutting-edge developments, theoretical frameworks, and research methodologies at the forefront of the discipline.
Post-Harvest Science and Technology
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Post-harvest science, covering technological tools, digital platforms, and information systems relevant to contemporary research and professional practice.
Horticultural Biotechnology
Year 1Semester 33 creditsCore
Biotechnology in horticulture, covering technological tools, digital platforms, and information systems relevant to contemporary research and professional practice.
Greenhouse and Protected Cultivation
Year 2Semester 13 creditsCore
Greenhouse technology, covering theoretical foundations, practical methodologies, and contemporary research developments relevant to doctoral study in this area.
Floriculture and Ornamental Horticulture
Year 2Semester 23 creditsCore
Floriculture, covering theoretical foundations, practical methodologies, and contemporary research developments relevant to doctoral study in this area.
Research Methods in Horticulture
Year 2Semester 33 creditsCore
Research design and methodology, covering quantitative and qualitative approaches, data collection techniques, and analytical frameworks relevant to doctoral-level research in the field.
Departmental Seminars
Year 3Semester 13 creditsCore
Research presentations and peer review of doctoral work, providing a platform for doctoral candidates to present research findings, engage with peer feedback, and explore contemporary debates in.
Thesis Research
Year 3Semester 26 creditsCore
Doctoral thesis research and dissertation writing, involving original research, literature review, data analysis, and the production of a doctoral dissertation contributing new knowledge to the.

Specialisations

Post-Harvest Technology
Research on post-harvest science
Olericulture
Research on vegetable science
Floriculture
Research on floriculture and ornamentals
Greenhouse Technology
Research on protected cultivation

A day as a student

A typical day involves conducting horticultural field trials, analysing crop growth data, running post-harvest experiments, reviewing horticulture literature, attending seminars on crop science, meeting with supervisors to discuss research progress, and visiting KALRO, KEPHIS and horticultural companies for research collaboration.

The trade offs

In its favour

Kenya's horticultural export industry creates strong demand
Access to KALRO, KEPHIS and horticultural companies
Research contributes to food security and export earnings

Against it

Field trials require land and long growing seasons
Laboratory equipment for biotechnology is expensive
Post-harvest research requires cold chain facilities

What it costs

Tuition at both ends of the market, and how to pay for it.

What it costs, and where

Against 303 agriculture courses

Public170k to 367k

170k at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology367k at Kenyatta University

Private200k to 314k

200k at Mount Kenya University314k at Kabarak University

Annual tuition in Kenyan shillings, rounded. The upright tick is the median for this field, so a bar sitting entirely to its right is an expensive programme by the standards of its own subject.

The fine print

JKUAT 170K/yr, KU 367K/yr (ku.ac.ke). MKU 200K/yr, Kabarak 314K/yr (kabarak.ac.ke)

HELB provides postgraduate loans. DAAD offers scholarships for postgraduate study. FAO provides research grants for agricultural research. NACOSTI provides research grants.

Funding options

HELB Postgraduate Loan
DAAD Kenya Scholarship
FAO Research Grant
NACOSTI Research Grant

Scholarships

4 recorded

FAO Research Grant
Grant
Agricultural researchers
HELB Postgraduate Scholarship
LoanKsh 200,000Kenyan
Kenyan postgraduate students
NACOSTI Research Grant
GrantKenyan
Science and technology researchers in Kenya
DAAD Kenya Scholarship
ScholarshipKenyan
Postgraduate students in Kenya

Getting in

The grades, the alternatives, and who accredits the award.

What you need

KCSE mean grade: Masters Degree
Alternative entry: At KU: Masters degree in Horticulture, Agronomy, Agriculture, Crop Protection or related from KU or recognised institution. Must include research project outline. KSh 367,200/year. Application fee KSh 3,000. At Egerton: Masters degree from Egerton or recognised institution. Faculty of Agriculture. KSh 200,000/year. Application fee KSh 2,000. At JKUAT: Masters degree from JKUAT or recognised institution. Application fee KSh 1,500. Total KSh 510,500.

MSc in Horticulture, Agronomy, Agriculture, Crop Protection or related field
Relevant Masters from recognised university

How you are assessed

3 components

Thesis
Thesis50% of the mark
Doctoral thesis research, submission and oral defence
Coursework
Continuous assessment30% of the mark
Assignments, field trial reports and seminar presentations
Thesis Proposal Defence
Oral defence20% of the mark
Defence of research proposal before faculty panel

Accreditation

Accredited by the Commission for University Education (CUE). Offered at Kenyatta University (School of Agriculture, KSh 367,200/year), Egerton University (Faculty of Agriculture, KSh 200,000/year, total KSh 742,700) and JKUAT (total KSh 510,500).

Accredited by

Commission for University Education
AcademicRequired
Statutory body responsible for accreditation of university programmes in Kenya

Where it leads

The roles it opens, and what you leave with.

Where graduates go

4 roles

University Professor
High demandKsh 180,000 to Ksh 450,000
Teaching and research in agriculture departments
Horticulture Researcher
High demandKsh 190,000 to Ksh 480,000
Research at KALRO and research institutes
Floriculture Specialist
High demandKsh 190,000 to Ksh 480,000
Floriculture at export companies
Horticultural Consultant
High demandKsh 190,000 to Ksh 480,000
Consulting for horticultural companies

Graduate outcomes

Graduates pursue careers as university professors, horticulture researchers, horticultural consultants and floriculture specialists. They work at KALRO, AFA, KEPHIS, horticultural companies and universities.

Where these fields lead

8 careers

Certifications

Industry links

Common misconceptions

Horticulture is just about gardening.
The field covers crop production, biotechnology, post-harvest science, floriculture and greenhouse technology.
There is no demand for horticulture PhDs in Kenya.
Kenya's horticultural export industry creates strong demand.
Horticulture research is purely field-based.
The programme uses biotechnology, molecular biology, post-harvest technology and statistical analysis.
Only agriculturists study horticulture PhDs.
The programme attracts biologists, biotechnologists and food scientists.